Waterplan Antwerp

The public tender for the Antwerp Waterplan was won in January 2018 by a team of De Urbanisten, Witteveen+Bos and Common Ground. With the Waterplan, water must return to the cityscape and various water problems are tackled.

Due to climate change, extreme rainfall will occur more often in the future than in the past. In addition, the number of days of extreme heat will increase, resulting in longer periods of drought and lowering of groundwater levels. This will be felt in cities worldwide, including Antwerp. Not only climate change, but also increasing population density and urbanisation are putting increasing pressure on the existing water infrastructure.

Over the course of a year and a half, the chosen team will develop a plan that indicates how Antwerp can in future focus even more on water in all urban development projects. The Waterplan aims at the integration and visibility of water in the cityscape, which improves the city and quality of life for inhabitants and visitors. Parallel to this broader level of scale, the Waterplan will also develop very concrete design and management tools that are easy to use in the public domain. Think of infiltration zones in plant boxes and under parking spaces. Residents, people who work in Antwerp and visitors will all be involved in the planning process.